Teaching STEM Outside the Box

Techbridge is a girls' after-school program geared towards fostering an interest in STEM related activities. Working with national funders like Google, Techbridge has been able to reach over 10,000 girlsin the past decade with programs outside of the regular school day. Realizing that choosing a STEM career has more to do with exposure than predisposition, their goal is to 'level the playing field' for girls by giving them opportunities, especially for those coming from under priviledged areas, to be involved with STEM related curriculum.

In an article published by Education Week, Nora Fleming takes a look at how Techbridge has impacted students in California and the broader reach programs like this could have nationally.

Are Educational Challenges Keeping Students from STEM Careers?

Fear of Hard Work Steers Students Away From Science & Tech

By David Mielach | LiveScience.com – Mon, Jan 30, 2012

While job opportunities in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) professions may be plentiful, many teenagers are unwilling to pursue a long-term career in these fields due to the challenges they present. According to a new study conducted by ASQ, students in sixth through twelfth grade felt that careers as doctors and engineers would offer the most job opportunities upon graduating from college, but 67 percent were unsure if they would pursue these careers, due to the numerous challenges they present.

Changing Perceptions of Women and STEM

Women still struggle to overcome real and perceived obstacles to pursuing careers in science, technology and math. It’s critical to expose and encourage girls in grade school to these subjects and give them the confidence that they can excel at them.

A recent article looks at the contradictions currently taking place – more young women are seeing STEM related careers as options for them, girls swept the top prizes at Google’s first science fair, however they are coming away with disproportionately less undergrad degrees in STEM or hold jobs in STEM fields.

U.S lag in science, math a disaster in the making

By William J. Bennett, CNN Contributor

updated 10:02 AM EST, Thu February 9, 2012

(CNN) -- Almost everyone, from educators to government officials to industry experts, laments the lackluster abilities and performance of our nations' students in science, technology, engineering and math (know as STEM education).

Two indicators are particularly worrisome, especially as this country experiences greater global competition and high unemployment. American students score 23rd in math and 31st in science when compared with 65 other top industrial countries.

‘Plumbing on a Computer Chip’ – Combining Pipes and Circuits

Lemelsen-MIT prize winner Stephen Quake has developed many innovative inventions tapping into physics and biology. His applications have resulted in breakthroughs in drug discovery, genome analysis and personalized medicine.